


Begone, and Bespoke

by GeneralGeryuganshoop



Series: Spoke!Verse [1]
Category: Five Nights at Freddy's
Genre: Bonnie is a child, Chica is mature, Dialogue Heavy, Freddy Fazbear is a jerk, Freddy's has some spooky shit goin on, Golden Freddy is enigmatic, I Wrote This Instead of Sleeping, Mike Schmidt swears, Mike befriends the animatronics, The Bite of '87, Very Lore driven, eventually, for now they're still assholes, missing children incident
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-27
Updated: 2021-02-19
Packaged: 2021-03-01 06:15:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 15,128
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23346781
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GeneralGeryuganshoop/pseuds/GeneralGeryuganshoop
Summary: Mike was a poor college student with a foul mouth, and temper, but passion for his work, and a desire to help others. He finds himself working as a mechanic and Night guard and Freddy Fazbear's pizzeria, and he discovers the darkness hidden within.He's given warnings, and multiple opportunities to back out.Too bad his stubborn streak never ended.Or maybe, he's just too attached to the franchise to let go just yet.
Relationships: Animatronics & Mike Schmidt (Five Nights at Freddy's), No Romantic Relationship(s)
Series: Spoke!Verse [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1857454
Comments: 44
Kudos: 195





	1. Day 1 & Night 1

Welp, he totally bombed that interview.

Mike sighed as he made his way back to the subway station, the cheap suit he’d bought shuffling as he reached in his pocket for his phone. He wasn’t the kind of person to let one small failure get him down, but twenty consecutive failures, that was a different story. He hated his current job for a number of reasons, but primarily because it barely covered his rent, leaving him with about 100 bucks after.

Considering his rent was $480 a month, that’s a problem. He was also probably making significantly less than minimum wage, but he wasn’t quite sure about that. That said, he worked eight hours, seven days a week, and still couldn’t pay for his below average apartment, so yeah, definitely less than minimum wage. Unfortunately, a lawsuit was out of the question, because it was simply too expensive. Man, catch-22s are a bitch.

That said, his shitty phone was a bit of consolation, as the job website he was using got updated for goddamn once. He scrolled through, very few jobs catching his eye, until one shows up that drew out memories he really forgot existed.

In the midst of his fuck off awful childhood, where his father showed up once a month, one place showed up in his memory for every day where his Mom was too tired to cook dinner, a children’s pizzaria that was infamous in town for two different reasons at two different times. When he was a dumb five year old, the place was known for the state of the art animatronics that were almost human in their personality and mannerisms. When he was a teenager, some time in the early 80s, an incident occured, leaving five children missing, and damaging the reputation of the pizzaria permanently. Then, a second incident, in November of 1987, when he was 20, nearly killed the restaurant. An animatronic malfunctioned, causing permanent damage to a kid, and dragging the restaurant into a massive debt. Now, he was 25, broke from university, and trying his damndest to stay alive, and not be broke, and it was driving him back to his childhood.

Well damn him if he wasn’t one hundred percent willing to do that.

Nightguard position, working from Twelve am to Five am, check, he’s not a morning person anyway.

Making twenty dollars an hour?! Abso-fucking-lutely. (Note: As author I am fully aware that he makes 120 bucks during his stay at Fazbears in the first game, but given that’s a stupid ass decision, I have elected to ignore it.)

He applied for the job, sent in his resume, and now all that was left to do was wait.

.  
.  
.  
 _Bzzt. Bzzt._

Apparently, not that much waiting to be done.

“Hello? Yes, this is Mike Schmidt. Nine tomorrow? Got it. Thank you so much, have a nice day.”

Fuck yes!

A nearby mother gaped at him, and walked away with her hands over her daughters ears. Oops.

* * *

9 a.m. came, and where Mike normally would’ve been furious with himself for waking up so early, a cup of coffee and the reminder that 25 dollars an hour was even a possibility put him in the best mood he’d been in in a while. He woke up that morning at 8, because the subway was a shitty method of transport but it was all he had, got dressed in his cheap suit, that he ironed for once, and made his way out, ready to fucking destroy this interview.

When he got to the place, It was in considerably better shape than he would have assumed. That didn’t mean perfect however. The sign was broken, with the screen pieces of the letters removed, leaving the lights inside exposed. That said, the image of the main mascot was in much better condition. He went to knock on the glass door, but it was opened before he could do so.

“You Mike Schmidt?” The guy who asked wore a pair of hideous purple coveralls, with a name tag marking him as Jerry Gagner, Custodian. 

“Uh, yes sir.” Jerry scoffed.

“Don’t call me sir, I’m only thirty-two. Though, I guess my haircut doesn’t make me look much younger.” Mike didn’t want to be rude, most of the time he was rude, it was on accident, but… Jerry had a point. He had a receding hairline, and his hair was cut short to make it a little less obvious. “Now, before you go meet the boss, let me give you a tip. If you can make him laugh, you got the job. He’s real stressed most of the time, so if you can make him laugh, he’ll know you have the ‘Fazbear Charm’. Whatever the hell that means. Either way, it’ll get you hired right off the bat.” Jerry gave him a half smile, and began walking off.

“Thanks Jerry.” The custodian stopped, and turned. He looked at Mike, and gave a full, genuine smile.

“You might not even need to make him laugh. No one’s been nice enough to thank me for my advice.” He went back whatever he was doing, leaving Mike feeling even better about this interview than he already did.

He walked down the halls, reading the plates above the walls until he found the one marked ‘Office’. He knocked on the door, and this time he was given an okay before he was able to go in.

“Ah, Michael, come in, come in.” He winced.

“Please, just Mike.” The manager nodded.

“Well then, nice to meet you Mike. I’m going to be one hundred percent transparent, this interview is a formality, with no other purpose than to make sure you don’t happen to be a wanted criminal. That said, let’s ignore that fact, and go on with our business.” He grabbed a large sack of papers, and dropped them on the desk. “I requested you specifically for this job because you can fill two roles. We need a mechanic desperately, but we can never find anybody willing to do the job. These animatronics are highly complex, and can’t be easily repaired. You graduated top of your class, with a Master’s in engineering and programming.” Holy hell, is he serious. “If you accept this job, you’ll be paid double your hourly rate, and rather than just being the Night Guard on Saturdays and Sundays, you’ll be the mechanic, getting rid of any damage the Fazbear Four may have gotten over the week.”

“So you’re telling me that I’m making 40 dollars an hour to do my dream job of only being awake at night time and being a repairman for my favorite childhood restaurant. I would sign that contract with my own blood if I had too.” A hearty bark of laughter seemed to fill the formerly tense atmosphere.

“Well then, I’m assuming you’ll want a pen instead.” Mike’s eyes widened. “Congratulations, you got the job. You can start tonight even. That said, if you do, I recommend you rush home and get some sleep.”

* * *

Mike made his way into the building around 11:45, leaving him with 15 minutes before his shift actually started to get back familiar with the pizzaria. 

He whistled as he walked in, looking around at the dining room area, when his eyes landed on the main attractions. The animatronics.

Now seemed like a decent enough time to be weird.

“Alright, if I remember correctly, you all are Bonnie, Chica, and the main man Freddy Fazbear, with Foxy over in Pirate’s Cove over there. I guess it’ll be just us five for the next six hours. Now, I’m gonna be your mechanic, helping you all out from time to time. If I find out any of you are trying to kill me, you’re getting shoddy screws and weak wires, alright. I sound like a boot camp director. Or my dad.”

He checked his watch. Five minutes. Better head to the office.

Little did he know that behind his back the animatronics were having a conversation all about him.

 **”Well, he seems eccentric.”** Bonnie never was one to sugarcoat things, in fact he often seemed to overplay them, but to Chica, his assessment of the Night Guard seemed on the nose.

 **“Definitely, he’s a few pepperoni short of a pizza.”** Freddy’s deeper voice interrupted the two.

**”Now now, he’s an engineer. They’re never the most… sane people.”**

**“I wonder if there’s a whole world of jokes I never knew because I’m not an engineer.”** Chica groaned.

**“I severely doubt that engineers have their own specific brand of jokes.”**

**“But they might. We ought to ask him.”** Freddy gave a sinister laugh.

**“I reckon you’re right, Bonnie. Let’s show him some Fazbear hospitality.”**

* * *

Mike was already annoyed with the office. He was relatively tall, six-foot two. So, he was already suffering with the extremely short chair he was given. He was trying his best to be at least semi comfortable, when a phone went off behind him. He let it ring, when it picked itself up. A pre-recorded message.

_“Hello, hello? Uh, I wanted to record a message for you to help you get settled in on your first night. Um, I actually worked in that office before you. I'm finishing up my last week now, as a matter of fact. So, I know it can be a bit overwhelming, but I'm here to tell you there's nothing to worry about. Uh, you'll do fine. So, let's just focus on getting you through your first week. Okay?”_

Well this guy seemed nervous. Alright phone guy, talk to me.

_“Uh, let's see, first there's an introductory greeting from the company that I'm supposed to read. Uh, it's kind of a legal thing, you know. Um, ‘Welcome to Freddy Fazbear's Pizza. A magical place for kids and grown-ups alike, where fantasy and fun come to life. Fazbear Entertainment is not responsible for damage to property or person. Upon discovering that damage or death has occurred, a missing person report will be filed within 90 days, or as soon property and premises have been thoroughly cleaned and bleached, and the carpets have been replaced.’”_

...So that’s why this job pays 40 bucks an hour.

Okay, now Mike was listening with rapt attention. If there was any chance he could die on this job, he wanted to know how. EIther to avoid it, or to run right to it. He wasn’t exactly sure.

_”Blah blah blah, now that might sound bad, I know, but there's really nothing to worry about. Uh, the animatronic characters here do get a bit quirky at night, but do I blame them? No. If I were forced to sing those same stupid songs for twenty years and I never got a bath? I'd probably be a bit irritable at night too. So, remember, these characters hold a special place in the hearts of children and we need to show them a little respect, right? Okay._

_So, just be aware, the characters do tend to wander a bit. Uh, they're left in some kind of free roaming mode at night. Uh...Something about their servos locking up if they get turned off for too long. Uh, they used to be allowed to walk around during the day too. But then there was The Bite of '87. Yeah. I-It's amazing that the human body can live without the frontal lobe, you know?”_

Yeah, real amazing. Good to know in case that’s how he may or may not die.

“What the fuck have I gotten myself into.” He held his face in his hands before running them up through his hair. He checked the monitor and saw that the three main animatronics were still on stage. He checked through the rest of the cameras, noticing minor shuffling behind the Pirate’s Cove curtain.

 _“Uh, now concerning your safety, the only real risk to you as a night watchman here, if any, is the fact that these characters, uh, if they happen to see you after hours probably won't recognize you as a person. They'll p-most likely see you as a metal endoskeleton without its costume on. Now since that's against the rules here at Freddy Fazbear's Pizza, they'll probably try to...forcefully stuff you inside a Freddy Fazbear suit. Um, now, that wouldn't be so bad if the suits themselves weren't filled with crossbeams, wires, and animatronic devices, especially around the facial area. So, you could imagine how having your head forcefully pressed inside one of those could cause a bit of discomfort...and death.”_ Yeah, sounds real fucking unpleasant. _”Uh, the only parts of you that would likely see the light of day again would be your eyeballs and teeth when they pop out the front of the mask, heh.”_

Did this motherfucker just laugh. Oh hell no, not today, Satan.

_”Y-Yeah, they don't tell you these things when you sign up. But hey, first day should be a breeze. I'll chat with you tomorrow. Uh, check those cameras, and remember to close the doors only if absolutely necessary. Gotta conserve power. Alright, good night.”_

Okay, it was 2 a.m., his shift lasted until 5. He could do this. Three more hours. Ready, set, survival.


	2. Night 1: Complete

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mike survives night one and begins to get some goddamn answers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is slightly off, in a number of ways. My way of writing the characters is slightly undefined. I need a few more writing experiences with them in order to get it together.

2:15 am, and Mike was fine. Bonnie had moved from the stage to the dining area. And Chica wasn’t on camera, but he could hear clanging whenever he was on the kitchen camera, so he knew where she was, at the very least. Either way, he was doing pretty good at not letting the animatronics get to him.

As depressed as he could get sometimes, being stuffed in an animatronic suit never to be heard from again didn’t sound like a particularly satisfying way to go out.

He flipped through the camera’s again, taking note of the fact that Bonnie was in the hall. Chica was in the restroom doing... something. Was she cleaning in there? Well he didn’t doubt that it was a mess in there, that said, he anticipated the animatronics being a lot more maniacal. Like Bonnie, who was currently staring at him through the door.  
.  
.  
.  
OH SHIT!

He slammed his hand on the door button, successfully stopping the animatronic from getting to him. When he was retreating from the button, he heard light chuckling from behind the door.

 _”Alright, you stopped me the first time. How much longer can you hold out though? Here’s to **hopping** that you can hold out until morning. For your sake.”_ Mike heard retreating footsteps, letting him know that it was safe to open the door. He made it past the first attack so he should- wait a damn minute.

Here’s to hopping?

Did the fucking bunny just make a hopping pun? Add that to the pile of reasons he needs another new job. Right on top of risk of death by stuffing. And not the good kind you get for Thanksgiving.

Right, he didn’t need to worry about Bonnie for a little while, he’s back in the dining area. Chica either, she was back in the kitchen. 4:53 a.m. He could do this.

He flipped through the cameras once more. Everything seemed normal at first glance, but then he noticed a poster had changed in the West Hall corner. It changed from the picture of Freddy, to a close up of an eyeless, yellow Freddy. He put down the monitor to see the very same thing staring at him. Fuck. His vision flashed, and he heard nothing but white noise. Amongst the staticky mess he heard two words repeated.

_It’s me._

_It’s me._

_It’s me._

Mike wasn’t a nervous person, but this was downright terrifying. He closed his eyes, looking for anything to distract himself. He forced himself to look at the monitor again. Pirate’s cove was still closed. Freddy was still on stage. Chica was in the east hall. He caught his breath, and looked up. The Golden Freddy was gone. And in its place, was a keychain. The same yellow, but with a purple hat and tie rather than the black ones the Freddy sitting in his office was wearing. He stared at it for a moment, before looking away. He flicked the lights on either door. Nothing. He was fine. No more bullshit.

Actually, some bullshit, Chica was outside the door. Shut. She groaned, and he heard stomping back to the dining area. Not today, Miss Chicken. He got back to his chair, plopped down like a dad after a long day of work, and flicked through the cameras once more. Nothing. 35% power, 5:15 a.m. He’s gonna be fine unless he gets sloppy on a different level.

He slammed his hand down on the left door button when he didn’t see Bonnie on the cameras.

_”Dang it. Thought I had got you there. Oh well. I wonder what else your time here will en-tail.”_

“Look dude, other than the fact that you’re trying to kill me, I have no issues with you. If you keep making these puns, I might.” Mike heard a chuckle.

 _“Can’t help it, mister Night Guard. It’s in my programming. If you have any more though, I’m all ears.”_ He laughed even harder when Mike groaned.

* * *

Bonnie lingered for a few more minutes before leaving, and the rest of the night was highly uneventful. A comical sound clip of children shouting hooray played when it finally reached 6 a.m., and Mike realized he had a difficult decision to make.

Unless he could break through to the animatronics, he risked certain death. And until he could, he risked certain death anyway. But say by some ungodly chance he managed it, this job would be the best damn thing to ever happen to him. Not to mention that he’d be making 40 dollars an hour, and to be quite frank, there was nothing else that could compare to that amount of pay in this city, and he didn’t have nearly enough money to move anytime soon. He bumped into Bonnie on the way out, nearly giving himself a heart attack.

“So, you’re the new guy. Well, for what it’s worth, it’s nice to finally meet you. That said, I hope you can forgive me.” He gave a light hearted laugh, as if he wasn’t out to get Mike not minutes before. “We’ve got some explaining to do. Come sit down, and we’ll hop right to it.” Mike barely held back a groan.

He came into the dining area to see Freddy sitting at a table, fiddling with a 6x6 Rubik’s cube. He sighed before he set it down.

“Hey. I’m Freddy. I’m guessing you knew that already, but eh. Pays to be nice, y’know.” This was not the demeanor Mike was expecting from the face of the Pizzaria. “Now, you’re probably wondering why we went after you for the past four hours? I can explain most of it, but Bonnie might have to interject at some points if I get something wrong.” He sat up in his chair. “Right, so roundabout 10 years ago, a guy by the name of William Afton founded Afton Robotics, and subsequently, our parent pizzaria, Fredbear’s diner. It was a family restaurant like this one, and it gained a pretty big following until 1983, when it all went downhill.” He nodded to Bonnie.

“William’s son, who’s name is unknown, got his head put in one of the original animatronic’s jaws by a bunch of bullies, including his older brother. He passed away from the injury, leading to Fredbear’s diner getting shut down. Later on, our diner got opened up, and was subsequently closed, because as it turns out, William Afton went crazy and killed five kids, and shoved them inside us. We were stripped down for parts, and left to rot. Right up until 1987, when the pizzeria that came before this one got closed down, because an animatronic malfunctioned and nearly destroyed the frontal lobe of the night guard at the time.” He picked up the cube that Freddy had yet to solve, and began working. “Then, we were reopened, and repaired, just not that well, because after he committed five murders, William Afton disappeared. He was the only person who had access to our original blueprints, and without them, our repairs went pretty bad. Foxy got it the worst, and was put on a near permanent out of order.” He sat the now finished cube back on the table, and a now much more sour looking Freddy stared at it.

“Now, we’ve basically been possessed by the spirits of the dead children. However, they don’t hold much power over us during day time. At night, it’s a whole different story.” Freddy went searching for something, presumably his signature Microphone, which was nowhere to be seen. Mike was still processing everything he’d been told, trying his best to understand the conformation of a number of things that barely made sense.

“But why!? Why do the kids' spirits go after us night guards? Last I checked I haven’t committed any atrocities in this lifetime.” Bonnie shrugged.

“Hard to tell. They could just be angry at anybody who’s here after hours. Or it might just be them thinking that they might find Afton if they kill enough people. Or maybe they just think they’ll find closure that way.” Chica wandered into the room, giving a cheery hello. Oddly enough, Mike was strangely reminded of his niece.

“Here, think of it as a reward for your first night!” She handed him a cupcake. “Enjoy it! I’ll have one ready for every night you make it through.”

Freddy returned, microphone in hand, and waved to the others to get on stage. He looked at Mike one more time before sighing. “Listen Mike, I like you. You seem pretty cool, not to mention that I remember you from when you used to come here as a kid. So word to the wise, quit right now. Call up the boss, and say you quit as night guard. Keep the mechanic job, but don’t stay here.” Mike opened his mouth in protest, but Freddy silenced him by raising a hand.

”I get it, y’know. I understand wanting to help, hell, I even tried to get them to listen to us. But listen to me when I say that no one has ever survived trying to help.” Freddy clasped his hand on Mike’s shoulder. “You don’t deserve to die, Mike.” He went on stage, and Mike took that as his cue to leave. Freddy’s words stuck with him as he made his way to the subway station nearby. Unfortunately for him, and his chances at survival, he’d made up his mind already.

“Like hell I’m quitting.” He had a new found resolve, and a hell of a burst of determination. Time to find William Afton.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ironically enough, I'm putting a large quantity of effort in for a story that's mostly for practice at the end of the day. I've done research on the various dates and events in the Fnaf history and timeline. That said, It's been a damn nightmare. I've been staring at the wiki to figure out character's personalities and movement patterns, how the A.I. operates, everything. Also, there's a very good reason why Foxy didn't appear in this chapter, despite the fact that he very much can appear on the first night. That comes with time however.
> 
> According to the Wiki, the character's personalities are as follows:
> 
> Bonnie has the personality of a rock and roll star. Prideful, and boastful. He also has a tendency for lagomorph puns. He has a manipulative side. 
> 
> Chica is gluttonous, but very kind. She's also a bit pushy.
> 
> Freddy is laid back and happy go lucky, contrary to the belief of the fan-base, and he's also very mischievous.
> 
> And Foxy is a pirate. Simple as that really. He's also claustrophobic, so Pirate's cove must kinda suck for him, and he's a bit reclusive.
> 
> Yes, I've done this much research for what's meant to be just a side project.


	3. Ch 3: Gabriel

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The names of the Missing children would be very useful right about now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is late as hell, because I've been doing schoolwork, and suffering. How's y'all's corona-cation going?

Upon making it home, Mike promptly collapsed on his bed. He didn’t think he was, but apparently he was running on adrenaline for most of the night. He was dead tired, and the cupcake Chica had given him was no help in that regard. He did have to wonder how she guessed his favorite flavor though. Maybe she remembered from when he was a kid. Or maybe chocolate was all they had lying around. He didn’t mind leftovers though. That was basically all he survived on most days. He closed his eyes and… yep, there it is. The moment he was ready to sleep, his brain went active again, and he couldn’t stop it. Okay, processing time.

The creator of the animatronics, William Afton, killed five kids, shoved them in the suits, and now they were haunting the animatronics. Great. Now he had to deal with them, and their most likely murderous intentions, until he either got them to leave, or got killed. Considering he had no knowledge of the paranormal, and that most things he’d seen in movies were probably incorrect, he went off the general idea that ghosts only exist when they still have something they need to do. And he could think of two things that unfinished business might be.

Getting to say bye to their families.

Removing William Afton from existence.

He wasn’t sure how he’d be able to help with either one of those. William Afton was fucking gone, and the kid’s parents were who knows where. Oh well. He’d finally gotten tired, so he threw away whatever he was thinking about, and went to sleep.

* * *

When he woke up it was 6 p.m., and he was mentally dead. He’d slept for upwards of ten hours, so that wasn’t a surprise. It also didn’t come as a surprise that he was starving.

Ironically, the only food he had was pizza. Seriously, why did he have twelve microwave pizzas. Well, he was on a new payroll, and he could afford more food. Time to go out for the first time in seven years.

He started on his way towards a not so grimy fast food location, where he fully intended to spend whatever money he had brought, which was at least 20 bucks, on some decent food. Either he made it to the end of this week and could pay his rent with no struggle, or he died and he never had to pay rent again. Win-win scenario. Huh. Wonder if they had any unused character suits. Maybe if he got thrown in one of those he could come back and join the band.

Actually, scratch that. He can’t play an instrument. Or sing. He’d probably end up in the kitchen. Or maybe the robot repairman for the robots. That could be a fun gimmick. But who would fix him if he broke…?

Okay, that’s too meta. No one needs that. Oh and he got his food too. Chick-Fil-A.

(AN: I am 100% aware of Chick-Fil-A’s scumbaggery, however, Fnaf 1 is set in 1996, when no one cared.)

Regardless, he made a note to ask his boss about it.

_Vzzzt. Vzzzt._

Speak of the devil.

“Hello?” His boss sounded frazzled.

“Mike, change of plans. Wear your secondary uniform, you’re playing mechanic today. We had an incident. Bonnie had his arm severely damaged because of an overly rowdy child earlier. Double motor lock in the elbow and shoulder. I know it’s short notice, so we’ve de-activated the animatronics all the way for tonight. We need you to run diagnostics on any of them as you see fit. Can you be here by 8:00?” Mike checked his watch.

“I should be able to. It all depends on the bus though.”

“Then I’ll have a co-worker pick you up.”

“No, you don’t have to. I’ll be fine if I leave in the next 20 minutes.”

“Trust me, it’ll be better to get here early.”

“Alright, tell me when they get here.”

* * *

His coworker arrived within ten minutes, which would’ve been all well and good, except for the fact that he was half dressed. He hadn’t gotten the opportunity to wash his black jeans, so he had to find his blue ones. He rushed out the door, and whoever had come to pick him up got to bear full witness to him tripping over his own two feet like a dumbass. Whoever it was, they didn’t seem very willing to help him up. She hopped out of the car, and boy was she something. She wore a leather jacket over the customary purple button-up of Freddy Fazbear’s. Her hair was dyed at the edges, changing colors between blue and pink. He smacked her gum loudly, but she stopped to talk to him.

“Hey, walk much?” She commented. He groaned as he pushed himself off the ground.

“No, I just got these legs today, thank you very much.” She smirked.

“Snarky, huh? You and I are gonna get along well. Lizza.” She held out her hand, and he took it.

“Mike. I’m guessing you’re here to pick me up. Unless someone else who lives in this building works there and I didn’t know.” She shrugged.

“Eh, there could be. I live three blocks down and didn’t know you were this close by. But yes, I was sent to pick you up. Now, are you going to get in the car, or am I gonna have to strap you to the roof?”

“I’d prefer if you didn’t. Let’s go.”

* * *

They got there at 7:25, and it was already relatively empty. They really did have to shut down early. None of the animatronics were on stage, and even Pirate’s Cove was open, with Foxy removed. Lizza waved him off, and pointed in the direction of the mechanic’s office.

When he got there, he found all the animatronics completely turned off. It was… vaguely unsettling to say the least. Their slumped over forms with their eyes glazed over. He’d never seen them turned off before, even when they were hunting him down they were turned on. He’d talked with them, found out their personalities, to him they felt so alive, the reminder that under all that, they were still just machines, it creeped him out. Still though, he had a job to do, and he couldn’t afford to not do it, so he swallowed his nerves, rolled up his sleeves, and got to work.

First up, Bonnie. The loud, boastful rockstar. In short, and in order to use proper mechanical terms, his shoulder was fucked. The entire motor had come loose, held on by a few wires and a couple of loose screws. The elbow was even more fucked. The entire motor was gone, and the joint itself was rusted over. That explains the minor joint stall he always had on that arm. Welp, let’s go to work. First off, removing the rust.

He got to work scrubbing the joint with a metal polish and a brillo pad. It worked, but it caused a slight bit of scratching that he wasn’t a fan of. Still, he couldn’t do anything about it as he didn’t have anything that could buff out the damage, and even if he did, that could make the motor a loose fit. He tested the joint, and was pleased to find that there was no rust actually collected on the inside. He screwed in the new motor, and soldered the wires to connect them. Easy. Up next, the slightly less damaged shoulder. He changed the screws, and changed the wires. Too much damage had been done to those for him to consider leaving them. Same process. He replaced the exoskeleton pieces with those from a box of extras he’d been given. Time to run a diagnostic check.

He clicked open the panel under Bonnie’s bow tie, and scanned his mechanic badge. Bonnie’s eyes lit up, and he stood up, rather unnaturally. His usual fluid motions were now stiff and… well robotic. “Test mode active.”

Creepy. Very creepy. Still though, Mike wasn’t deterred.

“Full range of motion test.” With robotic tenacity, Bonnie extended each of his joint’s to the limit with no issue. Right up until the head motion. That’s when the creepiness hit its absolute peak. His head began twitching, and he began repeating the same error message.

“Error 06. Error 06. Er-error 06. Er-er-er…” His voice faded out. And that’s when his eyes turned black. Mike backed up to the wall, utterly terrified. Bonnie slowly, methodically crept up to him. Like a hunter stalking his prey.

Then he stopped. 

“Y҈o҉u̴'̴r̴e̵ n҈o҈t҉ t̸h҈e̴ o҉n̸e̷ I̸'҈m҉ a̵f̷t҉e̶r҈.̵” The voice sounded like it was coming from everywhere at once, it was surrounding his senses, overwhelming him.

“...Good to know.”

“W҈h̵e҈r̵e҉ i̵s̵ W̶i̶l̵l̸i҉a̷m̵ A̷f̵t̷o̴n̵?̵” It took every bit of remaining willpower for Mike not to stutter.

“I don’t know.” Bonnie tilted his head.

“.҈.҈.̷Y҉o҉u҈'̴r̷e̷ t̵e҉l҈l҉i̸n҈g҉ t҈h҉e҉ t҉r̴u̶t̵h̵.҉” Mike nodded. “T̷h҈e̷n̷ I̵ h҉a҈v̸e̷ n̵o̴ b̴u̸s̶i҉n̸e̶s̵s̴ w҈i̶t̷h҉ y̸o҉u̶.̷” Bonnie’s eyes returned to normal for a moment, before he slumped over once more, completely powered down.

Mike’s breathing was shaky as he checked the time. Three hours had passed. The restaurant was cleared out. Meaning no one heard the voice but him.

“What the fuck just happened.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chick-Fil-A was founded in 1946. It’s older than McDonalds. Assuming that the technical timeline of Fnaf is correct, and we’re currently in 1996, Chick-Fil-A is goddamn everywhere, besides the Dakotas, Montana, Idaho, Oregon, Washington, and Nevada. And Maine, but no one cares about Maine.
> 
> Also, how'd y'all like Lizza? No, she and Mike will not be dating for reasons that will be lightly eluded to, and brought up in passing, but never properly addressed. If you can guess why, you get to name an important character.


	4. Ch 4. Helping the Others

Five minutes later, and Mike still hadn’t moved from the wall. It was as if he’d been glued there. His breathing was still ragged as he replayed what just happened in his mind in full detail. Whoever was haunting Bonnie clearly wanted nothing to do with him. William Afton. He was looking for William Afton. He wiped off his face and turned back to the other animatronics instead of the crumpled form of Bonnie laying in front of him.

When he turned he could’ve sworn he saw a crying child in the corner of his vision.

He swallowed. And moved on. Still though, he sent a silent prayer that he didn’t have any more occurrences like that.

Up next, Chica. 

She didn’t have much damage whatsoever. In fact, aside from the exo being slightly dirty, he didn’t see any damage at all. Still though, better run the same test just to be sure.

His hands trembled as he reached for Chica’s access plate, hers was under the bib she always wore. He steeled his resolve, and scanned the test badge. Everything was fine. Or at least he hoped it was. She behaved much in the same way Bonnie had. Voice more tinny and mechanical, and movements stiff and robotic. 

“Full mobility test.” She ran the test much in the same way Bonnie had. When she got to head motions, he began backing up on instinct. She stalled…

“Minor intrusion in neck joint area. Please remove, and resume testing.” She shut back down. He didn’t realize he was holding his breath until he stopped. He approached the animatronic, and Jesus why are these things so tall. He grabbed a stool, some pliers, and a flashlight, and prepared to grab whatever was stuck in there. He nudged Chica’s head in three different directions before he saw what was stuck there, and when he did, he almost snorted. It was a piece of leftover pizza crust. He pried it out, and re-did the joint test. Everything was fine.

He tested Freddy, everything was fine.

Everything is fine.

Okay, scratch that, Foxy sure the hell was not fine. The animatronic was, quite frankly, scuffed beyond belief. His torso was ripped open, revealing the endoskeleton beneath, his Jaw was loose, the entire bottom half of his legs were exposed, his voice box was mangled, in short, the fox had issues. Mike didn’t have half the things he needed to fix him. He needed a new voice box entirely, which simply was not present anywhere Mike could find it, he would need an entirely new torso piece, and he couldn’t tell for the life of him whether or not he was wearing pants, or if his legs were just brown. His memory simply was not good enough for that. 

Maybe he’d just buy Foxy a pair of boots and a Pirate’s coat to cover up the damage and call it a day.

Actually wait, that’s not a bad Idea. Maybe he should start making a list of parts he’d need. Mike briefly wondered if he could ask for a handheld belt sander, before realizing that those things were expensive and he’d definitely need to buy that himself. Didn’t hurt to ask though, so he put it on the list. He was banking on the fact that his boss seemed nice enough, and that the restaurant seemed like it was always full, so they were always making money. He checked his watch. Ten more minutes. What could he do in ten minutes. He looked at the animatronics for a minute before realizing that Foxy was missing one thing the others all had. His tail. Mike took a look through the box, and found exactly what he was looking for. A spare ten or so ball joint pieces, and a thick, fluffy kind of fabric, not unlike actual fur. He locked the ball joints in place, clicked them into the spine of Foxy’s endoskeleton, and wrapped the fabric around. Luckily, it melted together when he heated it up, because Mike did not trust himself with a needle and thread. 

Honestly, it didn’t look bad. It looked out of place, because it was newer and fresher, whereas the rest of Foxy was mostly broken down and dirty, but it didn’t look bad. He also didn’t finish it a moment too soon, because the chimes of 6 a.m. came before he realized. He walked out into the main dining area, and out the front door. He didn’t know that he missed Foxy’s giant smile when he realized that his jaw was fixed, or when he saw his new tail.

He was however, pretty confused when Lizza was waiting outside for him.

“Yo. Thought I’d drive you home since we live pretty close to each other. Then I got hungry. So now I’m asking you if you want to go get food.” She was still chewing gum. 

“Sure. I haven’t eaten in the past twelve hours, so don’t expect me to be some polite eater.” She laughed at that.

“Take a good look at me and ask yourself if you think I care about manners. C’mon let’s go. I’m hungry. There’s an IHOP just around the corner.” He got in the car, and they were off.

* * *

“So, why are you working at Freddy’s?” She asked him after they’d ordered. He raised an eyebrow. “Don’t get me wrong, I know more than anyone that working minimum wage jobs is what you have to do out of college, this is my fifth one, but why the night shift?” 

“Let’s see, I’m a killer insomniac, I am the opposite of a morning person, and it gives me the neighbors another reason to avoid me, because they probably thought I was a serial killer already.” She snorted.

“I’m only working there until I don’t have to. I’m gonna get my own mechanic shop one day.” Mike nodded. 

“I have no idea what I want to do with my life. I’m just some twenty-four year old with an engineering masters and nothing else.” Lizza shrugged before spitting her gum back into the wrapper and shoving it back into her pocket.

“Eh, no one knows how life goes. We just guess and hope.”

“...That’s fair.”

They were silent for a while before Mike broke the silence again.

“What do you know about the night shift at Freddy’s?” Lizza perked up.

“I’ve heard some rumors. Things like the animatronics roaming at night, or that ghosts are haunting the place. But those are just rumors, right.” Mike pursed his lips.

“Sure, let’s go with that. What’s your relationship status?”

“Single. Not really into guys.”

“One of those independant types?”

“Sure, let’s go with that.” Mike tilted his head, and she gave a mischievous smile in response. “What about you huh? I’m guessing you only asked because you’re looking.” Mike shook his head in response. He pulled his hat down further to hide his messy hair. 

“Nah, just wanted to know if I had to worry about some guy getting mad that you’re talking to another dude. I don’t know if you can tell, but I’m not exactly a fighter.” She gave him a look. “I know, shocking.”

Their food got there, and Mike went to town. He barely registered Lizza’s laughter.

“Damn, you weren’t kidding when you said you were hungry. You should have ordered more food.”

“ ‘robably.”

* * *

When they both got done, they made their way towards Mike’s apartment. He got out of the car, feeling the beginning stages of exhaustion start.

“Hey, Mike, give me your phone.”

“Huh, why?”

“So I can give you my phone number jackass, why else?” He made an ‘oh’ face before fishing his phone out of his pocket.

“Jeez dude, this thing is ancient. Whatever management is paying you, it isn’t enough.” Still though, she put her phone number in, and went about her business. Mike stumbled up the stairs, fumbled with his keys, got inside, and barely made it to his bed, before falling asleep without even taking his clothes off.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As far as I'm concerned, Mike is a disaster with good intentions. That's it, that's his personality. Yes, this chapter is slightly short, I'm experiencing minor writers block. If I stop writing this story, just wait until the next Fnaf game comes out this year. Then I'll be back. But for now, let's keep on keeping on.


	5. Night 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This took a lot longer than I would've liked for it to, but online school is murdering me.

When Mike woke up his mouth felt like a desert. Or Fazbear cheesy bread. As decent as their pizza was, the bread left something to be desired. Specifically, any semblance of moisture your mouth may have had. He got up, dragged himself to the kitchen, grabbed a cup, and drained a cup of water. Then another. And then another. He stopped himself at three. 

“Ugggh.”

He walked back into his bedroom to grab his phone and check the time, and was pleasantly surprised by the fact that he hadn’t slept until six this time. It was only 4:00. Small victories. He had eight hours before his shift, and enough time to figure out what in the name of **fuck** he had seen. Okay, ghosts, they exist, good to know. William Afton, those ghosts in particular either want him in jail or want him dead, so that’s good to know.

Oh dear god he’s basically dealing with incredibly murderous dead children. Wow, top ten sentences you never expect to think, much less live through. He went to use the bathroom, and noticed that he was still wearing his work clothes. That he had slept. in. Jesus christ he needed to wash those. And burn his covers. Nothing that came in contact with that restaurant’s dust could in any way be healthy. Including himself.

“I hope I can find some quarters lying around…” He went for the immediate first contender for lost coins. The couch. After searching through the couch for about forty seconds, during which he found: The missing remote for his cheap TV, an old chip, two batteries, and a paperclip, he finally found two quarters and three dimes. Next up, the kitchen.

Three drawers in and he found two more quarters. Nice. Finally, his bedroom.

He looked through both his dressers, and didn’t find any quarters, but he did find the warranty for his mattress. Maybe he could get the spring that poked through fixed. Or maybe just get a new mattress. Oh. He also found an old plushie that he kept. Unsurprisingly, it was from Freddy Fazbear’s pizzaria. An old Bonnie plush. The bunny always was his favorite. Made sense that would be the first one of the ghosts he communicated with.

Oh, there were some quarters. Time to do laundry.

As if his building wasn’t shitty enough, you also had to pay for the laundry machines. Oh boy! Paying to put my clothes in a machine used by dozens of people before me, who could have any illness or be carrying dust mites and/or bed bugs. Jesus. Oh well, it was the only way to get clean clothes since he didn’t have his own washing machine. As he loaded up the machine, he started zoning out, thinking about how the ghost he’d seen had addressed him. He knew he wasn’t Afton. He slotted his coins and closed the machine. Oh well, he’d deal with the crap when he got to the restaurant. His phone buzzed, and when he checked he cursed under his breath. Speak of the devil and he hath appear.

“Hello?”

“Mike, why does Foxy have a tail? We lost that years ago!”

“I made it. I couldn’t fix him, I didn’t have the materials, so I threw that together since I had some time.”

“Well, what do you need to fix him? That’s kind of why I hired you for two positions.” Mike had to refrain from a sigh.

“The list of everything I need to get everyone in proper order is on my desk. I left you a message about it, even.”

“Bah, it’s this phone. I had to get it fixed yesterday, and since then half my messages don’t even come through. I’m sorry, I’ll get what you need as soon as possible.”

“Alright then. I’ll see you sometime. Goodbye.” When the boss gave his goodbye, Mike hung up. He might need another nap, he was tired again. He stood up and checked the timer on the washer. 20 minutes. That was enough time to walk to go get something to eat. He left the laundry room of his apartment complex, and started walking. Nearby was a hole in the wall sandwich place, which he didn’t think looked appetizing, but apparently his stomach disagreed.

* * *

He got there by 11:45 when the animatronics went into technical shutdown so he wouldn’t have to deal with them getting on his back about not leaving the night shift. The phone rang again, similar to how it did on the first night. Either it replayed every night, or a different one played every night, in which case he completely missed last night’s. So he probably would have to go back and listen to that one too…

''Hello, hello? Hey you're doing great! Most people don’t last this long. I mean, you know, they usually move on to other things by now. I'm not implying that they died. Th-th-that’s not what I meant. Uh, anyway I better not take up too much of your time. Things start getting real tonight.”

As if they hadn’t been real already? Whatever. He started flipping through the cameras. Chica was already off the stage, but Bonnie was looking at his hands, almost like he was confused. He glanced up at the camera, and shrugged.

Well that’s weird.

“Uh... Hey, listen, I had an idea: if you happen to get caught and want to avoid getting stuffed into a Freddy suit, uhh, try playing dead! You know, go limp. Then there's a chance that, uh, maybe they’ll think that you're an empty costume instead. Then again if they think you're an empty costume, they might try to... stuff a metal skeleton into you. I wonder how that would work. Yeah, never mind, scratch that. It's best just not to get caught.”

However stuttery and blatantly obvious that may be, it’s not exactly bad advice.

“Um... Ok, I'll leave you to it. See you on the flip side.”

Thanks Phone Guy, you’re the best. He checked the camera’s again. Bonnie was sitting on the edge of the stage, swinging his legs like a child. He waved at the camera. Okay, that’s weird. Check for Chica. In the Kitchens. Cool. Apparently Foxy could move, because he was poking his head out of the curtains. He retreated when he saw the camera staring at him. Mike was thinking he oughta check yesterday’s tape. He scrolled, and set it to play.

“Uhh, Hello? Hello? Uh, well, if you're hearing this and you made it to day two, uh, congrats! I-I won't talk quite as long this time since Freddy and his friends tend to become more active as the week progresses. Uhh, it might be a good idea to peek at those cameras while I talk just to make sure everyone's in their proper place. You know…”

Already on it Phone Guy. Already on it. Bonnie was moving now, but he certainly wasn’t going for Mike. He seemed to be headed to some back room. Mike checked the power and winced when he realized that it was already down to 87% barely an hour in.

“Uh... Interestingly enough, Freddy himself doesn't come off stage very often. I heard he becomes a lot more active in the dark though, so, hey, I guess that's one more reason not to run out of power, right? I-I also want to emphasize the importance of using your door lights. There are blind spots in your camera views, and those blind spots happen to be right outside of your doors. So if-if you can’t find something, or someone, on your cameras, be sure to check the door lights. Uh, you might only have a few seconds to react... Uh, not that you would be in any danger, of course. I'm not implying that.”

Well then, Phone Guy, that seems like first night information. He checked the cameras again. Chica had made her way into the restrooms. Freddy was straight up staring into the camera, mild nightmare fuel, but okay. Foxy was peeking out of the curtains again.

“Also, check on the curtain in Pirate Cove from time to time. The character in there seems unique in that he becomes more active if the cameras remain off for long periods of time. I guess he doesn't like being watched. I don't know. Anyway, I'm sure you have everything under control! Uh, talk to you soon.”

Again, first night information.

Bonnie was… nowhere to be seen. Mike checked the Hall lights, but Bonnie wasn’t there. Well that’s also minor nightmare fuel. 2 a.m. Here we go.

Chica was in the east hall, but not close to the door.  
He checked Pirate’s Cove.

Foxy was nowhere to be seen. Mike went white. He slammed his hands down on both door buttons, wasting a bit of power was better than running the risk of making the wrong choice on which side Foxy would come in from. He heard banging on the left door.

**”You’re a smart one. I ought to thank ye for bringing my tail back. So, I'll afford ye a luxury the others wouldn’t. I’ll kill ye before I stuff ye, that way it wont hurt… As much.”**

“...I’ll take you up on that offer if you catch me. That said, I have no intention of being caught. So don’t count on it.”

 **”Yarharhar. We shall see, laddie. We shall see.”** He heard the heavy footsteps leaving the door, but he still waited for a second before opening it.” He flashed the light on the right side, which stopped him from making the mistake of opening the door when Chica was in the doorway. Not today.

He flicked through the camera’s again. Seeing that Chica was back in the dining room, he opened the door to that hallway back up. He took note of everybody’s location, and powered down the tablet. Gotta conserve power. 4 a.m. Two more hours.

* * *

And those two hours were completely uneventful. Six a.m.came, and he was ready to talk to the animatronics, without the presence of murderous children.

When he entered the dining hall, Freddy was there, looking particularly peeved. Bonnie was also there, fidgeting nervously with his tie.

“Hey, Mike.”

“Yes, Freddy?”

“Did I not tell you to quit the night shift?”

“Did I not survive last night?” Freddy deadpanned.

“Maybe you did, but I don’t want to run the risk of you getting killed because you haven’t gotten hurt yet, so you don’t believe the danger.” Mike snorted.

“Trust me, I understand the danger. But I did note something pretty interesting. Hey Bonnie. How were you feeling last night?”

“...I was well.”

“I notice you didn’t come near the office much?” The bunny turned to look Mike in the eyes.

“I’m not sure what happened. Normally, 12:00 hits and some sort of… mental switch flips, and all of a sudden, my enemy is the night guard, but today… I don’t know. I just didn’t want to come after you.” Mike stood up from the table.

“That’s the point I want to make. When I was running repairs, I talked with… well, less talked with, more like got talked at by whatever ghost is possessing Bonnie.”

“YOU TALKED TO GABRIEL?!” It wasn’t just Bonnie who shouted, but Freddy too. The two looked completely invested, if they weren’t already.

“Yeah. He let me go. He said that I wasn’t who he was after.” Freddy looked in genuine shock.

“They never talk to anyone. Except through us.”

“...Maybe it has something to do with me being the maintenance guy too? Maybe they only talk when you guys are powered down?” Freddy shrugged.

“I don’t know, Mike. You’re an anomaly.” There was a brief stunt of silence before Chica came in with two cupcakes.

“Two nights, two more cupcakes.” He thanked her, and was ready to leave, when he saw Foxy out of the corner of his eye. 

“...Thanks for fixing me up lad.”

“Sorry I couldn’t do much. I didn’t have much material. Once the boss gets back to me, I can help you even more. We might be able to get you back on stage soon enough.” Foxy didn’t say anything, but his tail wagging more vigorously gave away his excitement. Mike gave him a nod and a wave, and left.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Gotta love Bonnie, right? He's my favorite. That's why I liberated him first.


	6. Ch. 6: Susie

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Damn, could I take any longer to update stories? The answer is yes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was a genuinely difficult chapter to write. Good thing it's over. Sorry if it's kinda shit, I just wanted to get something out at some point.

The cold November struck Mike instantly as he left the building. He had a decent winter coat, but he didn’t have a scarf or anything to keep his face warm. Fortunately for him, a familiar car drove into the parking lot. The window rolled down to reveal a tired looking Lizza.

“Get in dumbass, My shift starts in three hours and I want to get some more sleep before then.” A cold breeze pushed past, sending a shiver through his body. She didn’t have to tell him twice. 

The ride back to his apartment was absent of any talking for the first half of the ride, the only thing filling the silence was the high energy music Lizza had put on to keep herself awake. At some point she turned it off, instead opting to talk with him.

“So, that music isn’t working, and unless you want me to fall asleep, crash the car, and take both of us out, you better have a damn good story to tell, so get to it.” Mike chewed his lip. He couldn’t think of anything besides last night.

It took him all of two seconds to realize that talking about his job would be extremely interesting or terrifying to most people.

“So, the animatronics come to life at night, they’re possessed by angry spirits, and they try to break into the office to get to me right? So I’m doing my job last night, y’know, flipping through the cameras, checking the doors, trying to stay alive, everyday stuff really, and-” She cut him off, giving him a side-eyed smirk.

“Okay, I know I said a good story, but not that good. You’ve gotta be lying.” He shrugged.

“What, you’ve heard the rumors. I’m just confirming them.” She snorted.

“You’ve gotta be messing with me. If what you’re saying is true, which I severely doubt, there’s what, no company policy against telling people? No way that numerous people haven’t gone to the police?” Mike grimaced.

“You’re telling me that, if you were a police officer and someone came to you ranting about killer animatronics you’d believe them?” Lizza paused at that. “Plus, how many people do you think actually check those cameras and make it through the first night? I bet you less than half of them.”

“That’s dark. Either way, keep talking. This sounds interesting.”

“Okay, so normally, Bonnie’s the first one off the stage, maybe his ghost is hyperactive or something. But today, I check the cameras, and Chica’s gone, but Bonnie’s still there. And not acting like the animatronics do when they’re in attack mode. So I go through the night, no trouble, obviously, and so I get through the shift without Bonnie showing up once. Turns out, I talked to that ghost during my mechanic shift yesterday. Or, I guess two days ago. So now he doesn’t want me dead anymore.” Lizza nodded.

“One question, why do the others want you dead anyway?!”

“...They think I’m the guy who killed them.” She pursed her lips.

They rode in silence, before she spoke up once more.

“I’m coming with you tonight.” Before he could object, she kept talking. “If anything goes wrong, I won’t come with you again, but for tonight, I want to go with you.”

“No way.”

“The problem with you trying to say no is that I’m the one who drives you to work.” He stared at her, before slowly sinking back into the car seat.

“...Wow. Smart move.”

“I know right.”

“I can just take the bus.”

“With how slow this city’s transport is? I’d have time to clean the place out and make myself a pizza before you even got there.” Mike sighed, and gave in.

“Fine. Just do what I tell you please? If I die, that’s one thing. If you die, that’s a completely separate matter.”

“Okay, okay. Now get out already, we’re here.” He got out of the car, and started walking, when she whistled at him. He turned around to just barely catch something she’d thrown at him.

“How the hell were you gonna get in your house without your keys?” She drove off before he even got the chance to respond.

He made his way up the stairs, into his apartment, and as per routine, he fell asleep immediately, only just barely managing to get his work clothes off and throw on something simple so he wouldn’t have to wash his sheets two days in a row.

* * *

He woke up to five missed messages. Two from his boss, Two from Mom, and one from Lizza. Oh boy.

The two from his boss were just telling him that most of his materials were being confirmed, except for the handheld belt sander. Rats. He was, however, being left with a set of basic power tools, including an angle grinder, which could probably fulfil the same job relatively well. Sweet. He was also getting the pirate’s coat for Foxy, but the boots would take a while. Damn it, they can’t put Foxy on stage if the look isn’t complete.

Next up, messages from Mom. Number one was just telling him that he was invited over for Thanksgiving, and number two was asking about his new job. He’d wait on that one.

Finally, Lizza, telling him that she would be picking him up at 11:30. Like that was anything new. Still, it was nice of her to tell him.

He had food in the house, he didn’t have to do laundry, he had nothing to do.

He stared at the ceiling for about three hours before he finally got the great idea to watch whatever was on TV. There was nothing good. He stared at the ceiling for about two more hours. Then , before he could even begin to conceptualize reading whatever books he had lying around the house, Lizza called to tell him she’d be there in 10 minutes.

He scrambled to put his work clothes on, and sprinted out the door.

* * *

Lizza was dressed in purple. Not the gaudy, might legitimately make your eyes bleed if you looked at it for too long, type of purple the Fazbear uniforms were, but a softer purple that brought about an odd sense of familiarity from something Mike couldn’t place. She was chewing gum like she usually was, and her hair was pulled back in a lazy bun, the dyed edges dispersing pink and blue throughout the whole thing.

“So, are the animatronics gonna stop me from coming in or something, like some night guards only system?”

“They have a 2-hour period where they’re turned off completely after they close at 10. You’ll be fine.”

“You seem worried.”

“That’s because now I have to worry about you and me.”

“Please. I’m not just gonna be dead weight, you tell me what I need to do to help.”

“Less about helping, more about situational awareness. The animatronics get smarter every night over a six day period, and we’re on day 4. If we don’t pay close attention, any one of them could get through and grab us. No second chances.” Lizza blew a raspberry at him.

“Look dude, if it’s so dangerous, why not just quit? In my eyes, you either have some noble cause to work for, or you’re just an adrenaline junkie.”

“...Little bit of both.” Lizza snorted at that.

They pulled into the parking lot at 11:50.

“Hope you used the bathroom, cause we’ve got six hours of sitting in one place with no way to leave.” Mike followed the familiar path to the security office, with Lizza trailing behind him. He looked back at the stage. All three animatronics were on stage. Pirate’s cove was closed. All’s right for now.

When they got into the office they had to struggle to orient themselves in a way that was comfortable. Five minutes left until they had to start.

“Okay, you stay near the right door, and hit the lights or button when I tell you to. I’ll handle the left side.”

“Gotcha. Anything else?”

“In about thirty seconds the Phone Guy is gonna call. I don’t know what he’s gonna say, but whatever it is, it’s usually slightly helpful or vaguely unsettling.” On cue, the phone rang, and Mike pressed the speaker button to let it play for Lizza to hear.

“Hello, hello? Hey! Hey, wow, day 4. I knew you could do it. Uh, hey, listen, I may not be around to send you a message tomorrow.” There was a very audible banging in the background. “It's-It's been a bad night here for me. Um, I-I'm kinda glad that I recorded my messages for you uh, when I did.” Mike had gone pale when he realized what happened in the call. Lizza had her hands over her mouth, her eyes gone wide as dinner plates.

“Uh, hey, do me a favor.” More banging. Foxy must’ve been after him. “Maybe sometime, uh, you could check inside those suits in the back room? I'm gonna to try to hold out until someone checks. Maybe it won’t be so bad. Uh, I-I-I-I always wondered what was in all those empty heads back there. You know…” He heard a groan. “Oh, no -” The scream of an animatronic overlapped the Phone Guy’s scream.

Mike couldn’t believe it. He’d never considered that his one ally, the only reason he’d made it this far, could’ve lost. Mike paused. He swallowed. He checked the cameras.

His finger hovered over the backroom for a split second before he moved to check Pirate’s Cove. The curtains were wide open. He slammed his hand down on the door button, and not a moment too soon. Foxy’s banging sounded, and Mike winced as he saw the power drop. 

“ **You caught me not a moment late. You need to pay more attention lad. Foxy is real fond of you, be a shame if you died by his hook!** ” He heard the retreating footsteps, and waited until he saw Foxy’s curtains close to open up the door.

“Holy crap, you weren’t kidding. They really are after you.”

“Told you. Chica’s in the hallway, but she’s not at the door yet. Flash the lights every once in a while, if she’s in the doorway, shut it.” He checked the cameras again.

Bonnie was struggling with… something in the dining room. Is that the same Rubix Cube from Monday? Whatever, back on topic. He heard Lizza close the door, meaning Chica must have made her way into the door. Foxy was peaking out of the curtain but upon seeing the camera on him, he retreated.

He also flipped the camera off. Classy.

Freddy moved off stage for the first time, and was moving quickly in their direction. He was already in the kitchen, and unlike the others, he was following a linear path.

“Check the lights, if Chica’s not in the door, open it.” He kept flicking through the cameras, noting the doors flipping up in the background. Now for the long game.

* * *

The night was going okay. 34% power, but it was also 5:30, and they really didn’t have to worry. He nodded at Lizza, who closed the door on her side. Then, a voice that he hadn’t heard before sounded through the door.

“ **You may have convinced Gabriel you’re innocent, but you won’t fool me. I was the first. I have seen it all.** ”

“You’re looking for William Afton right? As far as I know he’s dead or in hiding.”

“ **Nice try, but you can’t fool me. Open this door and face the consequences of your actions!** ”

“What actions? I’ve been here for like a week.” He checked the camera’s once more. Bonnie was moving in from the left side, and fast. He had 12% power, he couldn’t hold both of them off until 6.

“Mike, don’t close the door. Gabriel can talk her down, just keep the door open!” Bonnie walked through the doorway, but gave pause when he saw Lizza. “Mike, you know you can’t bring your girlfriend in for your shift.” Mike sputtered at the accusation.

“Not my girlfriend! Just- just do what you need to do.”

Bonnie slumped over briefly, before standing back up. His eyes had gone jet black.

“ **Well, you seem pretty agitated, huh, Susie?”**

 **“Ugh. now you’re helping him? Gabriel, he’d the one we’ve been after!”**

Mike hadn’t noticed that Lizza had moved next to him until she tapped him on the shoulder.

“Let’s just book it dude. Let them argue, while we get out of here.” She hissed at him, but he shook his head.

“If we leave, she’ll think we’re running away, and then she’ll only think she’s right even more. She seems… stubborn.” He tuned back into the spirits conversation.

**“He’s not like him Susie. He’s helping us, he’s trying to fix Fritz, if he was Afton, then why would he be helping us?”**

**“It’s all a part of his game Gabe! He’ll act all nice, and then he’ll stab you in the back the moment he gets a chance.”**

**“I severely doubt that. Not to mention, he’s not running. Afton was a coward, he’d be running with his tail between his legs the first chance he got.”**

**“You just won’t listen will you. Fine! I’ll listen to you, but the moment I see any funny business I’ll be the first one to come after you.”**

“...That’s fair, I guess?”

The bells chimed, signaling 6 AM, and Mike was honestly ready to get the hell out of dodge.

“Alright, it’s six. Let’s get out of here. I’m tired, hungry, and I need to pee, so let's go already.” Apparently Lizza shared his sentiment. The moment they left the office, she ran for the restroom.

Mike made his way to the dining room, where Freddy was waiting for him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have a discord server, join if you feel like it, I guess. https://discord.gg/SnuMB2


	7. Chapter 7: Gold

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A certain golden visitor comes to play.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> To one certain FireFrienduwu, one of the two names you suggested got used here. The other one will be used soon.
> 
> This chapter is about half the length, and the next one probably will be shorter too, but we'll make up for that soon enough.
> 
> No, Micheal Afton will not be making an appearance in this story.

After being scolded for fifteen minutes straight by Freddy for bringing another person in after hours, and for continuing to risk his life in the worst possible way for all the wrong reasons, he and Lizza headed home, exhausted, but relatively unscathed.

And apparently the universe wasn’t done with him because Lizza decided to start laying into him when they got to his house.

“Just because you have it in the house doesn’t mean you should eat it.”

“Pizza will be fine for breakfast.”

“Do you just not know how to cook? Is that it?”

“...Maybe.” At this, she threw her head back and groaned, before getting out of the car. “I just don’t see the big deal about it.”

“You are a grown man Mike. A grown man who does not know how to cook. We’re fixing that.”

She moved like she was on a mission, throwing open the door to his apartment with a key that he forgot he’d given her, and beelining directly for his kitchen. She opened his fridge, and the cabinets before grabbing whatever it was she needed. She guided him through the steps of making pancakes, and he was briefly surprised at the fact that he had all the ingredients.

“The recipe makes four pancakes so we’ll each have two.”

“Or we could make a bunch of mini pancakes.”

“...Touche.”

They ended up making eight smaller pancakes each, throwing them in two bowls with a dipping cup of syrup, a.k.a. some smaller tupperware he’d had lying around. They talked around the topic before they finally arrived at the thing that was at the forefront of their minds. The night before, and the ghost named Susie. 

“So… about last night.”

“In any other context, my response would probably be ‘In my defense, I was drunk’.” She snorted.

“Get serious. We could’ve died.”

“I doubt they would’ve killed you.”

“Yeah, but they would’ve had to. You’re deranged if you think I’m letting you die without a fight.”

“Well, if anything I’m one step closer to figuring out how to get them to stop going after me.”

 **”But you’re not there yet. I think I can help.”** Lizza and Mike’s heads snapped to the left at the sound of a new voice. The same golden Freddy animatronic, slumped over, just like it had been when Mike had first seen it. Only this time, two white pinpricks of light were glowing within the eye sockets. **”Hi! I’m Theodore. Or if you want, call me Golden Freddy.”** Lizza dropped her pancake.

“Why are you in my house?” The animatronic giggled. Unlike the others, whose voices were very similar to the animatronics they were possessing, and you really had to listen to discern a difference, this voice was still distinctly childlike, yet almost delpic in nature. 

**”I go where I’m needed. And right now, you need me. I can tell you who knows where my father is.”** Mike gaped, while Lizza hadn’t stopped gaping since the bear first talked.

“You’re William’s son.”

**”That’s me. Theodore Afton.”**

“...Huh. What did your mother look like exactly?”

 **”Human. I unfortunately died at the hands, or rather the jaw, of the animatronic I’m possessing.”** Mike winced.

“I wouldn’t have thought William would kill his own son.” The temperature grew a little colder around the animatronic, and the lights in his eyes grew dimmer

 **”He didn’t. At least not directly. My dad ignored my brother, focusing all his attention on me and my sister. My brother got… let’s say mad. He and a group of his friends bullied me for months. He’s 6 years older than me, so I couldn’t do much. We share a birthday, but Dad never celebrated his birthday anymore once I was born. On our birthday, he pulled what should’ve been an innocent prank. I was terrified of the animatronics, so he and his friends thought it was funny to stick my head in the thing’s mouth. They never expected it to crush my skull.”** Mike heard Lizza gag from behind him. Either she choked on her pancakes, or that imagery was a bit too much for her. **”Your friend is choking.”** So it was the first one.

“I-I’m good.” He heard her call out raspily from the table.

 **”My brother was in pieces over what happened. He never wanted to hurt me for real, he just wanted to push me around. I never saw him cry before that…”** Mike wasn’t sure how to respond, luckily Lizza stepped in for him.

“So, what happened, is he still alive or, or did your dad…” The unspoken fear was quelled immediately, and despite his jaw not moving at all, the bear’s demeanor changed.

**”He’s fine. He even kept the Fredbear plush I carried around all the time. Sometimes I break away and inhabit it for a second, just to tell him that I forgive him. He doesn’t believe it’s me, of course, but I like to think it helps him feel just a little better. But of course, we’re far off topic. Foxy knows where my father is. Or at least, Jeremy does. You have to talk to him to get the information.”**

“Hmm. I have to go in to do some more repairs on Foxy anyway, maybe I could figure it out then. God dammit they didn’t get the boots I wanted for him.” Lizza snorted a laugh at that one.

“Why does Foxy need boots?”

“Pirate aesthetic. I got the coat but I need the boots. It’s also because I don’t feel like sewing the fabric and fur onto the feet.”

“Got it.”

 **”Well, whatever you do, do it fast. Fritz is getting angrier by the day, and Freddy is the smartest and the strongest of them all. I can’t stop him if he really wants you gone. Fritz has seen you turn two of his allies against him, and it doesn’t help that you look just enough like my dad that he won’t be convinced it’s not you until you’re already dead.”** Mike shrugged.

“I work well under pressure. I got through engineering school didn’t I?”

* * *

Lizza drove home after that, leaving him alone in his apartment with a golden bear animatronic, who seemed like he was content to sit on the floor and watch Boy Meets World on Mike’s TV.

 **”You can go to sleep if you want. I don’t need to be watched.”** Mike would’ve argued, but he was running on fumes and desperately needed sleep. He faceplanted on his bed, leaving the animatronic to watch TV in his living room. 

His dreams varied wildly, but the most consistent one was Freddy’s icy blue eyes, staring down at him, totally emotionless, and a familiar animatronic screech.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My personal headcannon is that G.Freddy is the animatronic that the Crying Child possessed. I also like the idea that it was a bit deeper than annoying older brother things that caused him to do what he did. William seems like the type.
> 
> Also is anyone else made super uncomfy by the fact that Boy Meets World came out in 1993?
> 
> If you want to know Mike's apartment layout, here it is: https://docs.google.com/drawings/d/1GcGLJwEvZzPHwDSAB-RQauZw9jCz-0RDjGqdhMDK7DQ/edit?usp=sharing


	8. Ch 8: Jeremy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> But not the one you'd normally think of when Fnaf is involved

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Slightly longer than the last chapter, and if you can't tell, I've been wanting to write this one for a while. We got 4 chapters left, better make em count.

When Mike woke up, Golden Freddy was still in his living room.

He wasn’t sure what he expected, but that wasn’t it.

It didn’t look like the animatronic had moved at all, but the T.V. was turned off, and the lights in the animatronic’s eyes had gone off, like he was asleep. Mike wanted to be considerate, for a reason he couldn’t understand, considering the bear was still in his house, but he tiptoed past regardless, and moved for the kitchen, considering it was now 1 pm, and he hadn’t eaten anything since around 7 am.

Regardless of what Lizza would say, he knew how to cook some things. Really, it was just a coincidence that everything he knew how to cook required cheese as a primary ingredient. 

He started boiling water for macaroni, and briefly considered making some for the animatronic bear that was still occupying space in his living room, and probably leaving a stain on his carpet, before he shut the idea down, doubting that they needed to, or could even eat.

Then again, there was that one time where he saw Chica eating something in the cameras… Nah, probably just a thing to do with the possession.  
.  
.  
.  
He added a little more macaroni to the pot.

He picked up his phone to see that his boss had gotten the boots in, and he texted Lizza

_  
Mike: So the boots are in, but if I tried to do maintenance tonight, I doubt Freddy’s ghost won’t go after me._

_Lizza: Foxy’s out of service. I’ll come pick you up in like 30 minutes and you can do it now._

_Mike: I had not considered that option_

_Lizza: You have no common sense._

_Mike: I know, but hey!  
_

Mike finished making his macaroni and cheese, and re-entered the living room to see that Golden Freddy was still there.

 **”Mac and cheese?”**  
“It’s simple, and I like it. Also, why are you still here? Not that I mind, I’d probably be bored without you here, but I don’t exactly want my neighbors to think I stole one of the animatronics.”

 **”I’ll only stay for a little while longer, I have to go check on Micheal, my Micheal, anyway. I think I’m finally going to introduce myself for real.”** Mike looked over at the animatronic, and shrugged.

“He’ll definitely be happy to see you. Can you eat, by the way? I’ll leave the rest of this here for you if you can, I made extra in case you could.”

**”I’ve never tried. If not, I’ll bring it to my brother. It was always his favorite. I’m wondering if that’s just a Mike type of thing.”**

“Considering everything I know how to make requires cheese, I wouldn’t doubt that.” He heard the familiar honking of Lizza’s car, and he stood up to go out. “I’m going to try to talk to Jeremy. Maybe he’ll do me a favor if I can get Foxy up and running again. I’m guessing it’s not much fun sitting behind a curtain all day.”

 **”Be careful. Jeremy was never malicious, but he’s not without reason to be. He doesn’t trust Gabriel, and more importantly, he doesn’t trust you.”** Mike nodded and closed the door.

Goldie looked at the Macaroni that had been left on the table, and slowly lifted his hand for the first time in a while. He shakily picked up the fork, and grabbed a few of the elbow shaped noodles. He lifted it to his jaw, and chewed.

The taste was like he remembered, but Mike didn’t put enough salt on it. He picked up the bowl and teleported from Mike’s living room.

* * *

Mike felt a lot of general tension.

It was like Lizza was mad at him.

Oh god, was she mad at him?

“Are you mad at me?” He said it before he could even think about it, and he got a confused stare in response. Well that question’s been answered.

“Why would I be mad at you?”

“I don’t know, I was just thinking it, and then I said it.”

“How long was Theodore in your house?”

“Until I left just now. He’s going to see his brother.”

“That’s good for him. What do you need to do to get Foxy fixed up?”

“Check his endoskeleton, find and remove any rust, broken parts, replace any clipped wires, and then I need to re-felt his hands, his chest, and a good portion of his legs. Then I need to bolt in the coat, and attach the boots so they don’t fall off. Also fix his hanging jaw.” Even though she nodded, he was 100% sure that she didn’t care at all. 

“Think I can join you? I won’t be much help, other than handing you shit, but it’s bound to be more fun than waiting tables.”

“Eh, why not.”

* * *

Mike informed the boss, who’s name he still didn’t know, about the situation and after he was given the clear, he dragged Lizza to the back room, and soon enough an employee brought Foxy back on a wheelie cart of sorts. A dollie maybe? Whatever, he was there. After checking to make sure the animatronic wasn’t on, he made to strip away the ruined fur to check the endoskeleton and was pleasantly surprised that not much more damage had accrued since he had last worked on the fox, but what was there last time was still there, and needed to be fixed, so Mike got to work. 

Methodically, Mike moved around, buffing out rust where he could, and removing pieces that required more intense cleaning or needed to be replaced entirely. Lizza helped where she could, giving him tools, and pointing out places that he missed, even providing any knowledge she had from working on cars. They got the job done in pretty good time, and so once they were done, and attached the coat, hat, and boots, he looked like your average pirate.

Aside from being a 6’ 8” animatronic fox.

Then came the motion tests.

That’s when it all went wrong.

“Alright, Foxy, full mobility test.”

The animatronic extended all joints, right up until the arm with the hook. He stalled, and took a step forward.

Mike and Lizza stepped backward, with Lizza grabbing a metal pole to try and defend the two of them. They were pressed back to the wall of the room, when Foxy raised his hook to strike-  
.  
.  
.  
 **”Gotcha.”** Foxy lowered his hook and laughed boisterously, the kind of stereotypical ‘yar-har-har’ of a pirate. **”You thought I was gonna get you there, didn’t you?”** Mike stared at him, utterly confused.

“I’m not sure what else you would think if a giant animatronic came running towards you.”

**”You might think what all of us spirits thought before the purple man got us. That it’s just a part of the game, and you’ll get your reward soon. I was the last one he got. Gabriel tried to convince me to go in, and went in himself to prove it wasn’t that bad. After that, I never saw him again until we were Bonnie and Foxy.”**

“I’m guessing you two were friends?”

 **”Aye. But after we died we were never the same. I blamed him, and he withdrew, and we only worked together one time after that. The day we thought we killed William Afton. We trapped him in a springlock suit. An old design where you could open the suit up, wind the springlocks down, and wear the suit like a mascot costume. The locks were getting weak, and just when he thought he’d won, they crushed him to death. Or at least, we thought they did.”** Mike filed away the idea of converting suits as something to work on, as it sounded really interesting, but he definitely had some questions.

“What do you mean, thought you killed him? If I’m imagining these suits right, if the locks failed it would be driving literal metal into your organs. There’s no surviving that.”

**”We thought we’d won, but it couldn’t have been him. We still feel his presence, taunting us. It’s hard to pinpoint, but it only happens at night, when the only people left are the night guards. We’d go after them like clockwork, every time we’d hope that it was him, and we could finally get our peace, and every time we’d be disappointed when we’d kill another innocent. We’d always hold some sort of funeral, even if it was just lighting a candle when we were between night guards.”**

“So you had to guess if it was him or not?” Foxy nodded.

“But why?” Lizza butted in. “Didn’t you know what he looked like?” Foxy shook his head.

 **”He covered his tracks too well. He made sure he was unrecognizable in case one of his victims ever escaped.”** Mike groaned.

“The only thing worse than a killer is one with common sense. Well, maybe we can figure something out if we find the suit.” Foxy scratched his chin before shrugging.

**”It was in a safe room attached to one of the areas of the Pizzaria, I’d have to see the building plans. We know it wasn’t removed, but a lot of areas were moved around. We’ll figure it out. Stay out of trouble Mike. If nothing else, you’ve definitely helped Foxy get back on the stage again.”**

His eyes went dark as he shut down, and the room went quiet, no longer filled with the soft whirs of machinery, or the louder voice of Foxy. It was just Lizza and Mike, left to ponder on what they’d heard.

And also struggle to get Foxy back to Pirate’s Cove without children seeing, because despite the fact that the conversation felt like it had lasted a lifetime, the birthday party was still. Fucking. Happening.


	9. Fritz.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This bitch is late as a motherfucker. My problem is, the closer I get to the end of this story, the less I want to finish it. because the sequel's gonna be a bitch to write.

wThree out of four down, and Mike was one step closer to finding William Afton’s ugly mug, and sending it to hell, same day delivery. Jeremy’s information on how he’d gotten the children in the first place genuinely had him pissed, and the lengths he’d go to to solve this nonsense were getting longer and longer. But he needed to get his facts straight. He’s got too much information, and it’s not organized, and at this point his head is swimming.

Okay, the spirits, and by extension, the animatronics, think William is still alive, and can only feel his presence at night. This makes them go after the night guards, because they think the night guards could be him. There’s a secret safe room somewhere in the restaurant containing the animatronic they thought they’d captured William in. 

Wait, they only feel his presence at night. And the suit William was supposed to be in is still in the building. The spirits possessing the animatronics only become active at night, which could mean…

William might be possessing the springlock suit.

Okay, that’s a lead. And it makes sense, because there would be no reason for him to come around every single night.

Okay, maybe he could explain his theory to the gang, maybe they could help him. He just needed Fritz.

It’s absolutely imperative that he gets Fritz to listen to him.

* * *

Back and forth, the pendulum swings.

A night guard arrives, and the night guard dies. It’s a shame, but it’s a necessary evil.

Back and forth.

This one defies that cycle, just like the last one.

Back and forth.

This one has done even better than the last, no close calls, and no near-misses.

Back and forth.

He’s gotten his comrades to abandon him, manipulative is his nature.

Back and forth.

He must be the one. It’s him.

Back and forth.

The others may interfere, but he can prevent that. It’s of no matter to him.

Back and forth.

Back and forth.

He must get this right.

Back and-

Justice will provide the peace he so desperately seeks.

Forth. Back and forth.

It’s simply a matter of time.

* * *

Mike’s expectations are low, and he’s ready for anything.

Well, most things. If the animatronics start teleporting, he’s out. That said, he’s ready. He makes his way to the security office, and winces when he remembers the lack of a recording from his predecessor. He’s alone, for the first time. His eyes burn, and he forces down the tears. He can’t afford to slip.

He checks the cameras.

Freddy’s already off the stage. Mike can barely see him, lurking in the dark corners, and staring into the cameras. And everytime he moves, he’s accompanied by a bone-chilling chuckle.

All of Mike’s instincts scream at him, and he slams his hand down on the east door. He flashes the lights, but he can’t see Freddy at all. He’s about to open the door, when he hears him for the first time.

 **”You may have fooled the others, but I’m not that gullible. You fooled me once. It won’t happen again.”** He checks the camera, and Freddy stared at him through the camera in the corner of the east hall.

 **”Freddy can bypass the lights. He comes straight into the office if he gets there. Don’t let him.”** Mike jumps, before realizing it was Gabriel talking to him. The spirit was fading in and out, where it seemed mostly solid before.

“Thanks for the help, but are you okay? You seem like you’re struggling there.”

 **“I’m still tethered to Bonnie. I’ve gotten too far away, but I needed to warn you. The rest of us have been powered down, we can’t stop him. You need to get him to listen. Good luck, Mike.”** And with that, the ghost vanished, presumably back to Bonnie. Mike kept his eyes on the camera’s like clockwork, and he had one saving grace, which was that Freddy only kept to the East hallway, so he didn’t have to waste time checking anything else. The only problem was, he was always. Fucking. there. 

Seriously, he was by the doorway more than he was in any other part of the pizzeria, and Mike had considered just leaving the east door down for the rest of the night, but something was up with the power, and it was draining stupid fast. He was down to almost 30%, and it was barely 3 A.M.

He shut the door again.

“Hey, if you did something to mess with the power, could you do me a favor and undo it.”

**”I have not interfered. That would ruin our lovely little game.”**

“You really do not talk like Freddy. The others at least talk like the animatronics when they’re possessing them.”

 **”I won’t give you the satisfaction of hearing me talk in a goofy robot voice.”** And with familiar, heavy footsteps, Freddy was gone. Mike checked the power, and winced when he saw that Freddy’s latest incursion upon his life had drained his power to a measly 20 percent. He might not make it through this night if he’s not careful. He checked again.

“That’s… not right.” He said it out loud he’d been so confused. The power was jumping up. Considerably, in fact. It maxed out at 55%, and began to drain again, and before he even had had time to wonder what had gone wrong, the familiar slumped over form of Golden Freddy had popped into the corner of his eye, blocking the left doorway. “Oh, it’s you. How’d talking to your brother again go?”

 **”He cried. I would’ve, but uh-”** He gestured to his eyes. **“No tear ducts.”**

“Honestly, I wouldn’t put it past your dad to install something like them. He seemed crazy enough.” He pushed the door button as he heard footsteps at the end of the hallway, and he put the table down, opting to listen for Freddy to walk away instead. “Brown bear here is giving me some trouble, if you can’t tell.”

**”He seems… mad.”**

“I’d say pissed is more accurate. He thinks I’m your dad still.”

**”And if I tried to talk to him, he wouldn’t listen, because I have every good reason to lie. Nice.”**

Mike let the door release, and brought the tablet back up, and groaned when he saw that Freddy was already back in the kitchen. He kept an eye on him until he reached the corner, and shut the door at his approach.

**”I’m growing tired of this game, murderer. Consign yourself to your fate. I’ll do better by you than you did by us. I’ll make it painless.”**

“Still not William, but please explain to me how you plan to make forcefully stuffing me in an animatronic suit painless.”

**”...”**

“Yeah, that’s what I thought.”

This time around, the footsteps leaving the door seemed more along the lines of an angry child stomping after they weren’t given chocolate. Mike stifled a laugh. Five AM hit, and Mike was still riding 25%. He could do this. 

“Y̵̘͓̑̒̏̎̎̅͊̓ͅọ̷͖̱͙̝̲̗͉̾̐̏̑̈̈́͝ü̸̘̊́̿̎̐̉̎ ̷̢͙̫̖̊̈́̑̀̌͘͝͝ͅͅḿ̴̨̺͖̱͙̫͉̩͑̒a̶̩̞̩͆̈́̌y̸̢̛͖͇̣͉̏͌͋͗͋̀̋ ̷̨̨̛̟̗̖̻͉̊͆̇́̋̐ḩ̷̥̫̘̟̳͎̖̃̆͛̽͑̇͌͛̔ͅa̷̧̞̱͓͋̄̍̔̆̔v̸̢̢͓̒͊̑̅̿̒͘e̶̢̖̍ ̸̖̩̣͂͗̈̅̐̈́̉͝͝f̸̜̑̐̐͠o̷̡̩̟̣̼̠̱̽̏̂̇̇̾̽͑͘ͅǫ̴̢͖̖̹̱͇͈͇̰͑̆͝l̶̡̛͉̮͚̹̰̦̰̦̟͆̒͐̿̑̚e̷̼̗͖̖̹̘̬̼̯̓̽͋͜ḑ̶̛̯͖̲͕̳̲̎̉̆ ̷̫̪̗̘͓͎̓̓̅ţ̴̛̛̣͕̣͈̖̟̗͇̄͒̏̍̃͆͠ẖ̸̢̳̹̽̈́̂̌̒̊̋̒ͅe̸̪̔͌̿̉̓͘͝͠ ̷̢̲͈̮̮̬͈̖̜̂̏̿ö̷͍̝̝͚̳̤͖̚t̸̫̠̼͉͚̹͉͔̫̱͒̾͒̄̕h̷̟̲̝ė̴̳̝̤̠̏̾̓r̷̮̼̎͒͐s̵̨͕̤̣̩̰̜̉̓͠,̸̪̣͂̎̌̔̿̈́̆̔͗̔ ̷̝̖͚͍̅̏̃̊̍͘͝b̴̢̢̲̜̭̰̮̜̎͒̂̓̏͠ṳ̵̧̡͓͇̖̥͈͜͜͝t̸̗͕̤͂̓̍͛ ̸̧͓͈̏̅̀̽ỷ̵͔͍̻̃͌̋̀̊͛̓͜͝o̶͈̱̮͚̓̊̽̾͋͆͆̿u̷̧̥̹̟̣̒̓͠͝ ̴̲͎̘̰̃̍̌͂̿̈́ẃ̴̨̫̼͙̩͈͍͈͈̯͑i̵̠̳͉̦͋̊̍̇͋͂̉̊̽l̷̰̖̺̖͕͙͎̘͂̆̓̅̽̽̑l̴̖̭̘̟̍̇̄̆͐̾͛̄̕͠ ̸̤̲̭̙̬̙͆̉͐͘n̷̩̬̥͇͕͉̜̹̈́̏̈́̑ḝ̴̢̧̢͙̺̤͉̅̉̾̂v̵̡͚͔̲̱͖̒ȩ̶̻̰̀ṛ̴̼͚̫̭͎͆͐̏̑͊͂ ̷̼̙̤͎̲̬͂̄̈́̓̓͒͠f̸̢̧̹̝̣̰̟̀͋̍̈́͗̈ơ̶̧̨͚͇̩͐̌͒̐̓o̸̗̯͔͔̜̹̞̯̻̗̓͊͐̐̊͐̉̈̏̊l̵̡̯̭͈̻̜͓̋͌̎͊͐ ̷̡̻̘̫̤̉̅͗͗̈́͆͠m̶͕͈̻̱̗̬̮̎̾̊̊̚ȩ̶̞̟̖̄̐͘,̴͎͉̗̝̫̯̗͂̉͌̋͆̍͝͝ͅ ̴̨͎̩͈̝͕͖̊͋̚m̵͇̺̎u̶̧͖̬̳̫̗̾r̶̜̣̦͒̈́͗͊̾͗́͂͘͘ḑ̸̢̨̣̝͖̰̋̌̔̅͠ê̵̙͕͚͒̒̒̉̊ŗ̷̲͕̺̩̫͎͈̓͑̔͋̒̾e̵̱͚̭̝̘̺̼͗͒̀́̕͠r̴͈̲̬̝̿͘.̵͙̣̤̫̣̉́̍̎͐̉͆͗͠ ̸̼͓̮͚͙͉̭͙̯̯̐͑̀͐́̄͘̚͝Y̸͚̱̲̓ơ̷̢̤͇̩͇̥̫͒̔͐̇̀̾̾́u̸͚͎̱͓͔͉͝ ̷̥͍̱̘͖̥͇̾̔͌̊̚͝w̴͔̝̭̫̪͕̭̮̍͛͑͒̋̚͝i̶̡̯͋l̵̫̖̔̐̅̈̽͝l̸͙̲̤̼͐̔͌͐̄͘͝ ̸̗̮͈̮̖͗̏͊̀̓̋̓̈́̚͜n̵̨͔̤͖̯͍̰̓͑͑͑̍̇̈̆̅͘o̶͔͕̳͇̿͂̇t̷̢̛̠̙͕̮̹̘̔͒̍̈́̇̽͜͠ ̴̻͎͋̓̑̃̎̽́̚b̵̳͍̄̃̅ͅę̷͇̻͔̰̙͉͑̕͘ ̵͍͓̩͇̖̞̬̱̖͋́̐̊̓̾͋͘̚͝s̷̛̛̩͔̄̌͌̿͘̕͝ṕ̶͇͍̣̒̋̈́̐a̵̮͛̔̓͆̐r̸͇̭͇̞̥̱̝̲̟͂ȅ̴͚̩͓̟̬̘̍͗̓͗̒̕̕d̷̞̩̰̼̝̣̰̟̱͜ ̴̡͔͎̹̤͉̼̬̓̈́̾͐͆͑̌j̷̯͎̯̩͐̕ű̵͉̣̊̌̈́̄̎͂̀̆͒s̶̭̻̳͗t̷̢̛̝͖̠̪̱͇͇̊͌̾͋̿͛̉̌̏ͅĩ̶̗̭̖͈͍̼̰͛c̷͎̘̣̻̭̞̍̐̂̕͝ḛ̵̻̙͎̞͎̲͝.̸̢̝͆͐͑̔̓̑͆̕̚͝ ̶̛̜͉̤̦̐͑͗̈́̕̚͝Y̴̨͉͎̥̖̥̑͒̑͝ͅơ̷͔̇̉͐̓̓͊͂͘ũ̷̝̞̲͇͉̰̒̕ͅ ̸̧̛̰̫̻͈̺͇͇̗̘͋͌̆̇̓̾͝͝w̴̮̦̳̻̝̓͂̄͜͠i̵̬͎͎͇̤̮͎͇͖̙̎͌̑̑̈́̍͋̕͠͝l̷̫̖̐͌̽̽͑̎͊̚͝l̶͍̠̦̅ ̴̣̠̒͌̈́̉͂̃̚n̷̺̥̪̤̾͝ȍ̸̰̌t̵̨̩̣̮̘̪͉̫́́̀̈ ̴̛̼͕̥̂͌b̴͕̤̤̼͙͍͓͙͌͊͛̆͛̃͂̑̊̚ę̶͔̜͈̻̪̣͇̽͌̐̒͒͒̋͗̚ ̶͍̯̹̣͕̖̬̘̜̟̿͐̌̉̓s̸̯͍̲̹̫̲̯̆̉̃̓͘ȁ̴͖̒͂v̷͖̾̅̑̏͝ȅ̴͈̺͔̍̍d̷̗͕͋̋͐̋̌͑͠ ̷̢̧̝͖̙͌̕͠f̵̣͒̔͝ȓ̵̨̩̖̣͙̯̻͙̻́ō̶͇̤̗̝̱̲̳̈̔̅̕͝m̸̘̪̳͔̰̫̆ ̶͎̜̜̟̊̂͜y̶͕̩̰͎͇̟͚̰͒̌̏̈́̍̅̆͘ơ̴̮̩̙̻̜̦͍͂̓u̵̧̡͇̤̺̘̱̝̇̆͠r̸͚̥͗͂̆͂̔͝ ̸̢̦̋c̷̨̠̭̗̊̑̀͝ṟ̶̨̠̎̍̏̅͐̏̈́̒i̸̭͍̫̩̦̪͌̂̾͌̋̈̕͠͝m̵͔͖̰͎̆͊͋̽͘͝ê̸̛̟̎͊̇͌̃̎͝͝s̵͓̘͕̫̬̬̹̹̉̽̽ͅ.̸̜̺͓̖͎͈̮̆̄̍̐̃͑͘͝”

Wow. Fuck, his ears are ringing. Freddy was sitting on the stage, kicking his feet back and forth, very much akin to a child. Mike waited for him to make a move.

5:05

5:15

5:30

5:45

The familiar ringing and chiming of the 6 am bell, and Mike was up and ready to talk to Freddy. Game time.


	10. Soon

5-25-21.

That's the official date that I'm gonna start writing this again, and finish it off. I have the motivation, but my time is just taken up by everything. So, thanks for stickin around, and I'll see you then.


End file.
